Alleged al-Qaida Figure Pleads Guilty

LARRY NEUMEISTER

Published 8:00 pm, Wednesday, April 3, 2002

Associated Press Writer

A man described as a right hand man to terrorist mastermind Osama bin Laden admitted stabbing a prison guard in the eye with a sharpened comb, an attack prosecutors argued was part of a wide hostage plot.

Mamdouh Mahmud Salim, 45, pleaded guilty on Wednesday to conspiracy to murder and attempted murder just a week before he was scheduled to go on trial in the Nov. 1, 2000, stabbing of guard Louis Pepe. The attack left Pepe brain-damaged.

Prosecutors had argued that Salim stabbed Pepe as part of a wider plot to take hostages and win the release of other prisoners at the Metropolitan Correctional Center.

Salim could face up to life in prison plus 20 years.

His lawyer said the plea agreement would allow Salim to serve as little as 18 years in prison; prosecutors have said they will seek a life sentence.

"I'm not saying this is the greatest deal of all time," said attorney Richard Lind. "He wanted to control his destiny, rather than have a jury control his destiny."

The stabbing occurred as Salim and four other men awaited trial on conspiracy charges in the August 1998 bombings of two U.S. embassies in Africa. The attacks killed 231 people, including 12 Americans. Salim still faces trial in that case; no date has been set.

Prosecutors have said that Salim was aided in the assault by Khalfan Khamis Mohamed, who was convicted in the embassy bombings.

Salim is believed to be the highest-ranking al-Qaida member held in the United States.

After the attack on Pepe, the Sudanese-born Salim complained of harsh treatment by jailhouse guards and appeared in such distress at a recent court appearance that the judge asked guards to loosen his shackles.

On Wednesday, Salim's handcuffs and shackles were taken off and he appeared relaxed, though four U.S. marshals stood over him as he used a pen to sign documents.